Story highlights

Like you, a lot of us are bummed about not making it (once again) to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

That's why we got New Orleans native Judd Harris and his band Visible From Space to send us a little Fat Tuesday love, courtesy of the band's new music video, "If You Axe Me (A Love Letter to New Orleans)."

New Orleans never looked so good in a video that, filmed in November at multiple locations across the city, plays out like the most enticing Big Easy travel promo we've seen in a while.

"The song is a musical allusion to one of the most quintessential New Orleans and Mardi Gras songs, 'They All Ask'd For You,' by the Meters," says Harris, who fronts the New York-based Visible From Space. "I had written it years before while in New York and missing home, but we recorded it after Katrina because it became incredibly important to me to communicate my love for my hometown."

The song includes a lyric about shoes that might help travelers avoid one of the city's most venerable, if comic, hustles.

"Take it from the lyrics of the song -- if someone approaches you on Bourbon Street and bets you they can tell you where you got your shoes, don't take the bet," advises Harris. "Or tell them you've got them on your feet on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana ... and expect some money."

Like any local, Harris has his favorite hometown haunts for live music.

"The beauty of New Orleans is that you can walk into almost any club in the city and it'll be cookin,'" says Harris. "That said, my favorite venues are Snug Harbor and Tipitina's -- preferably the original location Uptown. Preservation Hall is also a classic."